Java VisualVM

Introduction to Java VisualVM

Java VisualVM is a tool that provides a visual interface for
viewing detailed information about Java technology-based
applications (Java applications) while they are running on a Java
Virtual Machine (JVM). Java VisualVM organizes JVM data that is
retrieved by the Java Development Kit (JDK) tools and presents the
information in a way that enables you to quickly view data on
multiple Java applications. You can view data on local applications
and applications that are running on remote hosts. You can also
capture data about the JVM software and save the data to your local
system, and view the data later or share the data with others.

In order to benefit from all Java VisualVM's features, you
should run the Java Platform, Standard Edition (Java SE) version
6.

Starting Java VisualVM

Java VisualVM is bundled with JDK version 6 update 7 or greater.
Once you have installed an appropriate JDK version, navigate to
your JDK software's bin directory and
double-click the Java VisualVM executable. On Windows this
directory will be the following:

C:\Program
Files\Java\jdk1.6.0_update-number\bin

Alternatively, navigate to your JDK software's bin directory and type the following command at the
command (shell) prompt:

jvisualvm

The first time that you launch Java VisualVM you are prompted to
accept a license agreement.

Java VisualVM Userdir

On Windows, the default location for the Java VisualVM
userdir is the following:

To find the location of your Java VisualVM userdir,
choose Help > About from the main menu and click Details in the
About Java VisualVM window.

Java VisualVM Windows

When you start Java VisualVM, the main Java VisualVM window
opens. The main Java VisualVM window is divided into two
windows.

When you first start Java VisualVM, the Applications window is
visible in the left side of the window and the Start Page is
visible in the right side in the main window. The Start Page
contains links to Java VisualVM documentation web pages and
additional resources.Note: The Start Page opens by default each time you start
Java VisualVM. You can open the Start Page at any time by choosing
Help > Start Page from the main menu. You can also hide the
Start page by unchecking the "Show On Startup"
check-box.

Applications Window

The Applications window opens in the left side of the main Java
VisualVM window when you launch the application. The Applications
window is the main point of entry for exploring the details of
running applications. The Applications window uses a tree structure
to enable you to quickly view the applications running on the local
machine and any connected remote machines. You can also access core
dumps (Solaris/Linux) and saved snapshots from the Applications
window.

Right-clicking a node in the Applications window opens a popup
menu that enables you to perform actions related to that node,
including opening application tabs, taking heap and thread dumps
and opening snapshots in the main window.

For more details about how to use the Applications window to
view and save data, see the following pages:

Main Window

Detailed information about applications is displayed in the main
window. When you view data about an application, each application
is represented by a tab in the main window that enables you to
easily view and navigate the data. Saved thread dumps and heap
dumps are also opened in the main window.

For information about the application data that can be displayed
in the main window, see the following pages:

Java VisualVM Plugins

You can add functionality to Java VisualVM by using the Plugins
manager to install plugins from the Java VisualVM Plugins Center.
You can also extend the functionality of Java VisualVM by
developing your own plugins that can then be added to an update
center.